


On the Edge

by Noelle_ish



Category: Shadowhunter Chronicles - Cassandra Clare, Shadowhunters (TV), The Bane Chronicles - Sarah Rees Brennan & Cassandra Clare & Maureen Johnson
Genre: Awkward Alec, Awkward Dates, Flirting, Fluff, I ship malec with happiness, Kissing, M/M, Malec, makeout, the title makes this sound like it has edging but it doesn't lol, when is he not
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-08
Updated: 2016-10-08
Packaged: 2018-08-20 04:52:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,764
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8236721
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Noelle_ish/pseuds/Noelle_ish
Summary: For their second date - which is just as nerve-wracking as the first - Alec offers up a game of billiards. Of course he’s never played such a mundane and utterly useless game before, so it falls to Magnus to teach him how.Basically . . . A game of pool turns into a makeout session.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I know I haven’t updated my main Malec AU story (You Were Unexpected) in a bit, but I saw this tweet and I just couldn’t resist a oneshot: https://twitter.com/PatronusMalec/status/784476288966807552
> 
> ALSO Yeah this is mostly based off the show, but I kept their first date scene from the books...I do what I want

“This _can’t_ be the way you’re supposed to play,” Alec protested.

Of course he’d never played such a mundane and utterly useless game before, but he was rather certain the pool-balls weren’t meant to be hovering right above the pockets. They looked like a whisper of wind would knock them in.

“There are several different ways of playing billiards,” Magnus quipped. “I should know. I helped invent some of these games.”

The warlock moved to each pocket, squatting down to get eye level. He made sure there was exactly the right amount of tiny distance between each pool ball and its pocket.

“But isn’t the point just hitting your balls into the nets?”

Magnus decided to ignore the joke he could make and instead said, “Not this version. This is called “On the Edge”. It’s to help with your aim more than anything else.”

“How do we play?”

“We each take a turn. Whoever can sink the balls in the least amount of hits wins. The hard part, of course, is not letting the cue ball go in as well.”

“O...kay?” Alec didn't mention that he believed the hard part would be just sinking a ball in the first place.

“Here, let me show you.”

Magnus took a cue stick and applied a generous amount of white chalk to the end. His cat eyes were narrowed at the targets. He placed his cue ball up against one of the table sides and began the exercise.

Alec had seen Clary take longer to draw a rune than it took Magnus to go through each pocket of the table, gently capturing each ball without the white one following after.

“Doesn’t look too hard,” Alec shrugged, trying not to look impressed.

As the warlock set back up the game, Alec quickly removed his outer jacket. It had been his suggestion to play the game soon after he'd arrived. One beat of awkward silence had passed until his powerful Shadowhunter instincts located the pool table and decided it was the best course of action.

Alec rolled the cue ball onto the table and tried to mimic the way Magnus had set up his. The warlock was watching him...the expression wasn’t judging, but observing.

People said first dates were the worst...the awkwardness, the uncertainty. For their first date Magnus took Alec out to one of his favorite restaurants. While there were some small awkward incidents, the date ended up going well when they were needed to help a young werewolf girl.

Saving someone together was a hard activity to top.

So Alec personally believed the _second_ date - the thing he was supposed to be doing at the moment - was actually the worst.

_Scratch_

Alec had heard the term before, but he wasn’t expecting his cue stick to actually create the sound. It skid on the table and barely hit the white ball at all. For its part, the cue ball glided slightly away from the stick, obviously disgusted by the poor attempt.

Magnus cleared his throat, “Your form is a bit...lacking. Let me help.”

The Shadowhunter didn’t know why he tensed up when the other man approached. They’d kissed before...He shouldn’t be so nervous!

Yet everything was still so new. Their first kiss in front of everyone, followed by hunting down Jace, followed by the first date, and now this…

 

* * *

 

Magnus was technically a genius according to some very reliable dead people. But he didn’t need his high intellect to see that the Shadowhunter was nervous. Alec looked even more frazzled than when he coughed up the scalding soup at the restaurant.

The High Warlock of Brooklyn had hoped - rather naively - that after the whole business with Alec’s wanna-be-hetero wedding and saving the poor werewolf girl, that they’d gotten past his discomfort. It was a bit disheartening to still have to walk on eggshells.

Fortunately, one of Magnus’ wonderful traits was patience with those who needed it...when he cared for them, that is. He didn’t suffer fools who went about their lives doing idiotic things. But Alec was no fool. He was just so new to affection...to love. If Magnus would let himself even think such a word.

“Your holding position is actually really important,” Magnus instructed. He arranged Alec’s fingers around the smaller end.

The Shadowhunter loosened up a little as Magnus moved to the other side of him. He drew the cue stick back towards them and held it for Alec. “The cut has to be smooth...straight through. So loosen up your fingers a little,” he laughed at Alec’s tight hold.

The stiff Shadowhunter was good at following directions though, very eager to learn...Magnus filed that in the back of his mind for later use.

Magnus brought the pool stick back and forth a bit to show Alec the movement. He then gestured for the Shadowhunter to hold it instead. Alec ended up grasping the back of the pole much like one would grasp a sword...or seraph blade, Magnus figured. With a smirk on his lips the warlock engulfed Alec’s hand in his own.

He kind of expected the Shadowhunter to tense at that or look away, but Alec did neither. Alec was watching Magnus’ hands over his much larger ones. He seemed to be interested in the dark midnight purple - someone less fabulous than Magnus would call it black - fingernails.

“Let’s do it together,” Magnus said.

Alec nodded in agreement, but his eyes were still on their connected hands. They drew back the cue stick together.

“Direct with your fingers,” Magnus referred to Alec’s other hand...the younger man had forgotten that hand existed for a moment. He did as he was told and aimed the stick towards the white ball.

“We don’t want to hit it too hard or the cue ball will follow in,” Magnus reminded. “Just a nudge to the side of the red ball will pocket it.”

Alec nodded again...apparently that was all he could do at the moment.

The pair drew back the cue stick one final time before shooting it forward. Alec’s cue ball had a wonderful spin to it as it smacked the left side of the red ball. The red ball fell into the pocket as the white one stayed where it landed.

“There we go!” Magnus clapped his hands together.

“See it’s not so hard,” Alec smirked good-naturedly. “Thanks-uh-thanks for helping me.”

“Now that I see you’re a natural, I’m not taking it easy on you.” Magnus offered up a wink at the raven-haired boy.

Alec moved to take his next shot. He tried to copy the form Magnus showed him. Right as he hit the cue he knew it was too hard. The white ball went flying into the pocket, not even bringing the green ball in with it.

“Well…don’t quit your day job.”

It wasn’t that funny of a joke...Magnus was used to being much funnier. Quite honestly he had said it just to have something to say.

But Alec laughed. The type of laugh Magnus waited to hear from him, the loud open kind where Alec wasn’t too inside his own head, but instead was truly enjoying a moment.

Magnus couldn’t keep his gaze off of Alec when the younger man was free. He spent so much of his life on guard...Magnus also knew a thing or two about that. There were glimpses of the relaxed Alec in his everyday life. When he was training with his parabatai or gossiping with his sister or teaching his little brother. But Magnus enjoyed it most when it was just the two of them and he could truly see Alec himself.

The warlock was so deep in thought he didn’t realize that Alec was looking back at him as well. He didn’t let himself wonder what Alec was thinking - that he might be pondering about Magnus’ own outward guard. That Alec might want to know more about Magnus than just his magic and glitter and fabulous taste in the finer things in life.

It was those Shadowhunter reflexes that were to blame. One moment the pair of men were staring at each other, the next their lips were touching.

Alec took the warlock by surprise...he rather had a knack for doing that. Magnus was always shocked by how Alec kissed. For someone with such little experience, he kissed with a fierce determination. His lips always hungry for more. Magnus was happy to oblige.

No matter how coy Alec could play, sometimes Magnus was able to read his mind. Without breaking their light connection, Magnus hopped up on the edge of the table. A few of the abandoned pool balls shifted. Alec gripped the side of Magnus’ face for a moment, brushing over the light facial hairs. Then he simply let his instincts move his mouth for him.

Magnus sat comfortably on the pooltable, legs wrapped around Alec’s tall torso. His fingers were deep in Alec’s messy hair. It was like a birds’ nest - Magnus could lose a ring in there if he wasn’t careful.

Alec continued his onslaught, not even giving himself a moment of breath. He merely breathed on Magnus’ skin instead. The warlock let himself elegantly fall back onto the table, holding himself up by his elbows. He was delighted that his wonderfully tall Shadowhunter was still able to reach him. Alec had began to move on to an impressive necking process.

Magnus was far from inexperienced, but he couldn’t help the slight groan. He felt almost like his virgin teenage self being given his first marks, so many years ago.

Alec paused, his eyes washing over Magnus. The warlock saw a crinkle of uncertainty in Alec’s expression...he could almost hear Alec ask “was that okay?” as if the Shadowhunter hadn’t just mauled him with affection.

With that thought in mind, Magnus started to take more control of the moment. He gripped the back of Alec’s neck slightly, his thumb drifting over the deflect rune. Magnus pulled the younger man down to meet his lips once more. Alec didn’t hesitate to continue where they left off, but Magnus was pressing the kiss deeper, going farther.

To someone looking from the outside it might have appeared like both men were fighting for dominance. But in reality they were balancing off each other keeping to a rhythm only they knew.

Finally the warlock broke away. Alec and Magnus’ lips were hovering only inches apart.

“I think,” Magnus breathed out before finishing his thought, “we just invented a new way to play.”

**Author's Note:**

> I half-dedicate this to my billards teacher in college...who knew there were so many different ways to play pool? ;)
> 
> ALSO they totally have crazy sex using pool stuff later but anyways ok bye
> 
> ~Reviews inspire me to write~


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